“Tell me a story”

Once upon a time I was creative, artistic, and spontaneous, and yet when bedtime happened and my children said, “Mommy, tell me a story”, I froze. My mind went haywire for no known reason other than I was tired and might have “small” doses of perfectionism I’m working through!

These “surprise” requests became more frequent so I devised my plan. What happened next is something I could not foresee or imagine; it has been pure joy.

I started off by saying that this story will not have an ending, it will continue in layers, that I will share a small chapter each time and that we all would have a part in the story. And then I was off! (Pretty much winging it!!)

I introduced characters a few at a time. And made up stories of many fun-filled activities that they do in their backyard. The boys were captivated; questions started flying, along with their imaginations.

“What color is Swift the dog?”

“How many fat cats live up in the tree?”

“Where does Sammy Squirrel hide his nuts, and who does he share them with?” and on and on the questions sparked.

I began thinking up story plots during the day as I watched life experiences play out in my boys lives. A simple story gave room for so much more!

sweet, secure times at sleep, focused parent time poured out,imaginations explored,ending the day on such a beautiful note, sealing wonderful memories of our story times together.

My older sons began writing out their own story plots off of our ongoing “book”. My younger ones started drawing pictures of our characters that we had created with words. One son dabbled in comic-strip approach and then shared it with the family.

Self-esteem boosts ALL because of the bedtime story. (And teeth got brushed faster because they wanted to make sure there was time for “our story”)

Stories are a part of our legacy. We tell and re-tell stories of family events, special reasons why each individual is dear to the family and moments that brought us to belly laughs. And then we create stories together; silly ones, happy ones, ones where giggles abound and seal that sweet bedtime into something sacred.

If you have not begun your story, don’t trip over perfect and planned, like I once did. Jump in with both feet! If you don’t know how to begin, start with “Once upon a time…” Sweet dreams for all.